Monique Bergeron, Acting Senior Director, Caribbean Regional Program, Global Affairs Canada speaks at the opening of the Sexual Offences Model Court in Antigua and Barbuda
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad — On Monday, 21 January 2019, the Judicial Reform and Institutional Strengthening (JURIST) Project, in collaboration with the High Court of Justice in Antigua and Barbuda, created history when it officially opened the Sexual Offences Model Court (SOMC).
The JURIST Project is a multiyear regional Caribbean judicial reform initiative, funded under an arrangement with the Government of Canada, and being implemented by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ).
Located in St. John’s, Antigua, the SOMC is intended to help remedy the deficiencies in the court’s current handling of sexual offence cases. These shortcomings were identified in a 2016 Baseline Study commissioned by the JURIST Project and undertaken by UN Women. The study identified the following deficiencies:
